You know there’s a rumor going around that Samsung is working on an improved Galaxy S4 Active with Snapdragon 800 power? Well, as it turns out, the S4 Active has become quite the (sleeper) hit, since Sammy is apparently ironing out the kinks of yet another variation of the device as we speak.

Only this one, model numbered GT-I8580, will essentially be for the original S4 Active what the S4 mini is for the Galaxy S4. Namely, a watered down version, with inferior hardware, a smaller screen, but the same exact design language.

Yet it’s going to be real hard to call the I8580 the GS4 Active mini, what with it sporting a 4.65-inch display that was not long ago considered gargantuan. Meanwhile, as far as the “inferior hardware” part goes, this fellow is as diminutive as it gets, packing an unnamed dual-core 1.2 GHz SoC (with Adreno 305 GPU, so maybe a low-clocked Snapdragon 400) and 1 gig of RAM.

And don’t even get me started on the panel, which will be quite cringe worthy, at an 800 x 480 pixels resolution and 200 ppi pixel density. The cameras are the icing on the cake (or, you know, the complete opposite), featuring 5 and 0.3 MP sensors, whereas the software department is one of very few strong suits here, as Android 4.2 Jelly Bean runs the show.

Given Tenaa, China’s FCC equivalent, reveals the GT-I8580 will share the physical key arrangement and layout of the S4 Active, chances are the upcoming mid-ranger will have a couple of ruggedized features, specifically (mild) protection to water and dust.

It should also be fairly elegant and skinny, measuring 9 mm in thickness and tipping the scales at 135 grams. Plus, even if we haven’t seen it get FCC’s stamp of approval, an international launch, especially a European one, is definitely in the cards.

When might that happen? We can’t know for sure, albeit with Tenaa and Bluetooth SIG giving the green light and GFX Bench taking it for a short benchmarking spin already, it can’t be long.

The two remaining questions are how the phone will be named (GS4 Active mini sounds like a joke given the dimensions here), and whether or not people will be interested. Will you? And how much should Samsung charge to help seal the deal? $300? $250? Hit us back with a comment.

Adrian has an insatiable passion for writing ever since he was in school and found himself writing philosophical essays about the meaning of life and the differences between light and dark beer. Later, he realized this was pretty much his only marketable skill, so he first created a personal blog and then discovered his true calling, which is writing about technology and gadgets in general and Android in particular.